


Café Love

by mashaka



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-29
Updated: 2015-07-09
Packaged: 2018-04-06 18:05:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4231596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mashaka/pseuds/mashaka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kaneki is a waiter at a café, and Hide is a regular.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> to be honest, this is just something fun for me to be writing as a break from work. i don't know how often updates will be, haha 
> 
> au where Kaneki survived anteiku raid, and Hide has the place of squad leader for the quinx. 
> 
> if i make any english mistakes, please let me know!!

Looking in the mirror, there is a certain disconnect from who he used to be and who he is now. His white hair was slowly starting to turn back black, and his eyes were no longer burdened by heavy bags, but he was still not the Kaneki he was before that fateful date with Rize. He knew he’d never be that person again, no matter how much time passed.

He finished tying the back of his apron; the last piece of the uniform he wore to work at the coffee shop Touka and Yomo had opened together. Turning from his reflection, he made his way back out to the front of the shop so he could start his shift.

It’d been nearly three years now since the raid, and he’d fallen into a nice pace. He worked as a waiter for the café, and in the early morning he helped bake items to sell to their human customers. He shared an apartment with Banjou, and the three ghouls that followed him. Hinami had moved back with Touka, but he still met with her every day to either teach her Kanji or to read together. He cut her hair when she needed it done. He lived a mostly normal life, one that he had previously thought not possible. It almost didn’t feel real. He was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.

As soon as he stepped out into the shop, Touka shoved a tray holding multiple cups of coffee into his hands.

“Table by the window. It’s the doves.”

He nodded, carefully taking the tray and trying his best not to spill while he made his way to the mentioned table. In the past month, a group of five doves had started to regularly come by the café. Though none of them carried the usual marker of a briefcase, they’d come by a few times in the uniform, and Touka said she’d seen them enter the CCG building. Kaneki was always the one sent to serve them when they came, because of a particular blonde dove’s habit to flirt with Touka. 

Setting the tray down on the table, it’s obvious he interrupted a private conversation with the way they all went silent. He smiled softly, anxiously, and handed the coffees over to each person.

“Was there anything else you needed?”

He stepped back and held the tray to his chest, silently hoping they’d say no and he could tend to his other tables. It wasn’t that they were bad people, in fact, Kaneki rather liked them. It was that he still felt nervous being anywhere near the CCG, despite no longer being on their radar and despite there being no way they could know about him being a ghoul.

“Hmm… How about cake for Saiko?”

The blonde that liked to flirt with Touka, Hide, spoke, smiling at a blue haired girl across from him. Hide was the only one Kaneki knew the name of, but it was easy to assume the girl he was looking at was Saiko. Kaneki smiled a little wider, now looking at the girl.

“I baked a strawberry one just this morning, but we also have cheesecake, and… ah…” He furrowed his brow, trying to remember the name of the other cake they had available. His cheeks warmed, embarrassed at how long he was taking to continue. “ _Chocolate_. And chocolate.”

Hide leaned forward, staring at him with wide eyes. “Did you say _you_ baked the strawberry cake?”

Kaneki nodded his head, “Yea. The other cakes were baked by Touka and another girl.”

“We’ll all have a slice of the strawberry, then! Gotta support our favourite waiter.” It’s said with a wink at the end, and Kaneki feels his cheeks warm all over again. He nods, “Alright, I’ll be right back with those.”

Just as he stepped away from the table, the bell above the door chimed, signalling that someone had just entered. Kaneki turned, ready to greet the customer with a smile.

“Welcome to…. Oh.” His smile slipped away, back into a more neutral expression. “What are you doing here? Your ugly clothes are going to scare away the customers.”

Tsukiyama gave a look of hurt, a hand pressed to his chest as he approached where Kaneki was standing.

“Oh, _mon ami_ , your words _wound_ me. But, if my fashion scares others off, it’ll be worth it to have you to myself.”

He let out a sigh, turning away and walking to the front of the shop. He didn’t need to look to know the other followed him. Setting the tray down, he got to putting five slices of cake on it. “Why are you here?”

“Can I not simply visit you at work, no other motives?”

Kaneki turned his head, squinting his eyes at his suit clad friend.

“No.”

Tsukiyama let out an exaggerated sigh, running a hand through his hair. “So cruel, my Kaneki is. But, I did come with a purpose. I have the information on the auction you were looking for.”

Kaneki froze his movements before hurriedly putting the last slice needed on the tray.

“Let me take this to that table, then we’ll talk.”

* * *

 

Hide groaned, watching as the ~~love of his life~~ cute waiter walked away with who seemed to be his boyfriend. Because that was just his luck, that the guy he’d been crushing on for weeks was in a _relationship_.

“Don’t worry, maman, maybe they’ll break up.”

He looked up from his cup of coffee to stare at Saiko, breaking into a grin as soon as their eyes met. “I like your thinking, Saiko.”

“When you like someone, aren’t you supposed to just wish for their happiness? Not for their relationships to fail?”

Hide switches his gaze to Shirazu, pursing his lips in thought momentarily before shrugging. “That would be the mature thing, yes. But I never claimed to be mature.”

He nodded sagely, then proceeded to add lots of cream and sugar to his coffee.

“You’re going to get cavities from all the sugar you add to your coffee.”

His head turned immediately at the familiar voice, his smile wide as he gazed at Kaneki’s amused face.

“What can I say; I’ve got a sweet tooth! Must be why I like you so much.”

And, okay, that was terrible. He definitely needed to work on his flirting skills. Kaneki rolled his eyes, setting down a plate of cake in front of each person at the table.

“Flatterer. I bet you say that to all the pretty girls.”

Hide is pretty sure every time Kaneki smiled, a kitten was born. That smile could probably make world peace happen. It definitely made Hide’s heart speed up and his stomach feel sparkly.

It was only when Kaneki walked away that he realized he’d been staring that whole time. Though he was sure the guy was used to it, looking as good as he did, it didn’t stop him from feeling embarrassed.  

The sound of light coughing broke his thoughts, causing him to look at the source, Mutsuki.

“Sorry, senpai, but, we should continue talking about the mission, right?”

He nodded. “Right! I wanted to brief you guys on what it’ll be like, since this’ll be your first time going into a big battle like this.”

Before he began, he shoved a large forkful of cake into his mouth. It was _good_ , and not just because of who made it. Hide decided he definitely needed to order food from this place more often, as he swallowed the cake with a bit of coffee.

“Alright! So, the raid,” he leaned forward, elbows on the table as he started to explain everything his squad should expect and prepare for.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took so long ;;; i hope you enjoy!!

Kaneki groaned, trying his best to rub the tiredness out of his eye. He’d gotten stuck with a double shift at the café, which normally wouldn’t be a problem if he’d gotten a full uninterrupted night’s sleep prior. Instead, he’d woken up part way through the night from a nightmare, and hadn’t been able to fall back asleep afterward. He’d thought he was done with those, the nightmares, but it seemed like his past was intent on haunting him and keeping him from a good night’s sleep. Due to his tiredness, he’d also donned his old eye patch, not wanting to take any chances. He was able to control his kakugan just as well as any other ghoul now, but he still felt so unsure of himself, didn’t know if he could focus enough to not accidentally reveal himself when he was tired like that.

“Yikes, you look _terrible_.”

He jumped and let out an embarrassingly unmanly noise, scared by the sudden voice. He hadn’t even noticed anyone enter, but there Hide was, sitting on a stool and leaning forward against the counter. He was laughing, and it took Kaneki nearly an entire minute to catch up to the fact that he was laughing at _him_. Scrunching his nose at the too cheerful man, he asked, “Weren’t you here earlier?”

“Yep! But I’ve got a night of paperwork ahead of me, and need coffee to live through it. It’s also always nice to see your face, though, I must say, you could probably use some beauty sleep.”

He turned around, starting on making the coffee Hide always ordered. “Are you calling me ugly? You know I could spit in your coffee whenever, right?”

“What? No way! Your face was, like, sculpted by the gods. I’m offended you’d even think I’d call you ugly. I was just _suggesting_ , that maybe, you know, you look a little tired.”

Kaneki rolled his eyes, giving the other his best judgmental stare when he set the coffee down in front of him. “Sculpted by the gods? Really?”

Hide nodded enthusiastically, his hands already wrapped around his cup. “Yep! A work of art. They should put you in museums.”

Kaneki started to laugh, but it quickly turned into a yawn. “Sorry. I guess I am a little tired.”

“Man, you know people can die from over working, right? You need to make sure you’re well rested!”

He was sure the other meant it as a light comment, was maybe even saying it out of real concern, but it struck a chord within him; it made him think of his mother, of walking in the house when he was ten and finding her limp form, bent over the table with no pulse and no chance of waking up. His gaze hardens, and he grabs a rag from the sink, already walking away from the behind the counter as he spoke.

“I need to go wipe the tables down. We close in half an hour, so try to be quick.”

With that, he went over to the table that was furthest from where the blonde was sitting at the counter. He knew this reaction was immature, unfair to the other that had no way of knowing what he’d said wrong; if he weren’t so tired, if he were thinking straight and properly, he’d have just brushed it off with a laugh, pretended the words carried no weight because, really, they shouldn’t. He was nearly twenty three; it was, if anything, pathetic to still get affected this way by reminders of his mother and her death. He pressed harder than he meant to on the table he was wiping down, only realizing what he’d done when it was done.  

“Shit.”

He stared down, taking in the piece of table that was now missing and on the floor. It was a corner, and he wondered if he’d be able to fix it before Touka could find out. She’d be angry with him, but he also knew she’d be concerned; he didn’t lose control like this, was always usually so careful, and if she saw that he’d done something so careless she’d know something was off. He wanted neither her anger nor her worry.

Picking the piece of table off the ground, he inspected it in his hand; he knew next to nothing about fixing furniture, and at almost ten o clock at night it was definitely too late to go to a bookstore to look for something on the subject. He wondered if _Elmer’s_ glue would work, or if he’d need some sort of special type. Could he tape it?

“Hey, uh, I left money on the counter, and… are you alright? You’ve been standing there and staring at that table for, like, ten straight minutes.”

He looked up in surprise, seeing a rather concerned looking Hide only a few feet away. Once again, he hadn’t even noticed the other until he’d spoken.

“I broke it,” was what left his mouth, even though he’d meant to say _yes, I’m fine, have a good night, see you next time_.

“You… broke it?”

Kaneki simply held up the piece of broken off table. Hide took a step closer, seeming to appraise the object he was holding up.

“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone mess up cleaning a table like that, Kaneki.”

And then he was laughing, and Kaneki felt something warm bubble up in his chest at the sound. Hide seemed to always be so cheerful, so full of sunshine, and he didn’t quite understand how the man managed it but he was glad for it. It made him feel better about the situation, having the other there to laugh at it. He watched as the blonde calmed down, a grin still present on his face as he spoke.

“Sorry, sorry! But, jeez. Do you want help fixing it? I mean,” Hide cleared his throat, glancing to the side and scratching his cheek. “My kids break stuff all the time, so I’ve gotten pretty good at fixing things.”

Kaneki stared at the other with a mixture of wonder and confusion, unable to stop himself from blurting out the question on his mind. “You have children?”

“What? Oh! No! I’m way too young and pretty for children! I meant my squad, uh, the people I usually come here with.”

“…Oh. You refer to your coworkers as your kids?”

“Alright, mister judgmental, do you want my help or not?”

He cracked a smile at that, glancing between the table and the wood in his hand before looking back to Hide and nodding. “If you know what you’re doing, sure. But, didn’t you say you have paperwork you needed to do? I don’t want to be a bother…”

“Paperwork can wait! I’ve got all night for that. Besides, I’d way rather glue a table together with you than write reports.”

“…Alright, then. Uh, what do we do first?”

“Well, what kind of glue do you have here?”

* * *

 

Hide was in a state of _euphoria_ , standing next to Kaneki in a late night convenience store shopping for glue. Glancing at the other from the corner of his eye, he’s honestly amazed at how good he managed to look despite the harsh fluorescent lights of the store and the fact that he was obviously a bit sleep deprived. It really just wasn’t _fair_ ; no one should look that good under those conditions. He forced himself to look away and back to the glue, surveying the options before reaching out and grabbing one that had “ _for wood_ ” advertised in large letters. He turned his head, clearing his throat as Kaneki rubbed his eye for the umpteenth time that night (and that was another thing; he’d never seen the waiter wear that eyepatch before, but it made him look like some sort of sexy pirate. Hide didn’t even realize he was into that look, but he was definitely into Kaneki with that look).

“This should work. You need anything else from here?”

In his mind, Kaneki turns to face him head on, leaning in close and whispering “ _You_ ” before kissing him silly. But, of course, that’s only a fantasy; in reality, Kaneki just yawned and shook his head.

“No, that’s all.”

Hide trailed behind the other as they walked to the check out, unashamedly appreciating the view he had of the others butt. It was nice, and the uniform Kaneki wore fit him way too well to be fair. He was learning, it seemed, a lot of things about Kaneki weren’t fair.

When they got to the register, they were greeted by a bored cashier that seemed more interested in getting them out the door than in small talk. Which was just fine for Hide, because he wanted to spend time with Kaneki, not some teenaged boy.

The store they’d gone to hadn’t been that far from _:re_ , so after the glue was paid for it didn’t take them long to get back and inside the café. As soon as the door had been unlocked, Hide went straight to the broken table, shooting a grin at Kaneki.

“Here’s where my expertise comes in! Prepare to be _amazed_. Try not to fall in love with me.”

He says the last part with a wink, and the silent hope that maybe he wouldn’t listen and Hide gluing the table back together would be the driving force that made him reciprocate the blonde’s embarrassing crush. Kaneki just rolled his eyes, and moved to stand next to him.

Hide started with trying to open the glue, but soon decided whoever made the product clearly wanted it to be something purely decorational, never meant to actually be opened. He stuck his tongue out just slightly, focusing as he tried to twist the cap first to the left, then to the right, and then the left again. His multiple attempts stopped when his hand started to hurt; he looked at his now red hand, and then to an amused Kaneki.

“Wow, that was really impressive, Hide. That show of strength—I’m _swooning_.”

And then Kaneki was laughing, and it was the most beautiful sound Hide had ever heard. He wanted to hear it more, wanted to hear all of the different types of laughs the other had (because everyone had different laughs for different situations, and Hide bet his life on the fact that _all_ of Kaneki’s were as amazing as the one he was hearing then) and definitely wanted to see that smile more. He mentally slapped himself, realizing he’d been gaping; one of these times, the waiter was going to _notice_. Shoving the glue at the other and looking away, he said, “ _You_ try.”

The other had stopped laughing, but amusement was still in his eyes as he took the glue from Hide and opened it in only one try. He handed the now open glue tube back, looking much too satisfied.

“Aren’t you an investigator? As in, you fight ghouls? Shouldn’t you be stronger than a waiter?”

Hide pouted, taking the glue back.

“Shut up. I’m just a human, while _you_ ,” he pointed with his free hand at the other, watched as an odd look that resembled apprehension crossed his face. “Are clearly a god on earth pretending to be human. Well, I’m onto you!” The weird look left when Hide spoke the second part, turning into another eye roll instead.

“If I were a god, I’d probably be doing more important things than spending time with you gluing a table.”

Hide sniffed, pursing his lips before speaking. “Try and name one thing more important than spending time with your favourite customer.”

“Hmm… You’re right. I should go spend time with them, then.”

He gave the other an affronted look. “Kaneki!”

The other just laughed, pointed to the table and said, “If I say you’re my favourite customer, will you focus and glue the table?”

Hide considered it, tapping his chin in thought. “Yes. But only if being your favourite customer comes with benefits.”

“Benefits? I’m not giving you free coffee, if that’s what you mean.”

“Nope! I just want bragging rights, and… your number.”

He held his breath, watching the other carefully and hoping he hadn’t just messed anything up by asking for his number like that. Kaneki didn’t seem affected by what he said, simply nodded his head.

“Sure. You’re my favourite customer, and you can tell anyone you want. Now, seriously, help me glue the table. I’d like to go home at some point, you know.”

Hide grinned at the other, said, “Sure thing!” and turned his attention and gaze to the aforementioned table. He squeezed a line of glue onto the broken piece, pushing it carefully against the spot it belonged.

“Just have to hold it like this for a couple minutes, then it should be fine.”

He looked back at the other man, asking the first thing that came to mind in an attempt to fill the silence.

“So, what’s with the eyepatch? You trying to be fashionable?”

Kaneki looked surprised by the question, lifting a hand and touching it to his eyepatch.

“Oh… I was in an accident a few years ago, and though I’ve recovered, sometimes I still need it. I’d rather not talk about it.”

Hide admonished himself for bringing up what was obviously a sensitive subject like that; his mother had always told him he needed to think more and talk less, and in that moment, he understood what she meant.

“Jeez, sorry, man.”

He scratched at his cheek, looking away from the other and to where he was holding the table together.

“It’s alright. So—oh. One second, sorry.”

Hide glanced back at the other, watching as he dug a buzzing phone from his pocket, answering it with a _hello?_

“Of course I’m fine. What? No, I didn’t go anywhere. I’m still at the café.”

Watching the other as he spoke, Hide thought he must be talking to his boyfriend from yesterday.

“Yes, sorry. I’ll call you next time I’m going to be late. You shouldn’t worry so much, Banjou; you know I can take care of myself.” Kaneki crinkled his nose, and let out a sigh. “I’m hanging up now. Tell Tsukiyama he’d better leave before I get home.”

When Kaneki put his phone back in his pocket, Hide let go of the table, shooting Kaneki what he hoped to be a pleasant smile.

“Table’s should be good now. You need to get home to your boyfriend, right?”

The waiter just blinked, staring at him with confusion. “Boyfriend?”

Hide coughed awkwardly, running a hand through his hair. “I mean, sorry, I just assumed that was who you were talking to. But you’re dating that guy, the one that came in the other day with the suit, right?”

He didn’t know what he was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t for the other man to start _laughing_.

“No, _god_ , no. I’m pretty sure he’s just biding his time to kill me, so, no, I’m definitely _not_ dating him.”

“Oh… That’s good. I mean! Not _good_ , but, uh,” Hide flushed, praying for his words to come out right. “You shouldn’t date people that want to kill you!” Kaneki looked so _amused_ , smiling at him the way he was, and Hide was oscillating between wanting to disappear from embarrassment and wanting to bask in the others smile.

“I’ll keep that in mind. So, the table is… fixed? We don’t need to do anything else?”

Hide nodded, “Yep! The glue still needs to finish drying, but it’ll be fine by morning.”

“Thank you, Hide. I really appreciate you helping me like this.”

He grinned at the other, waving a hand in the air. “Don’t worry about it! I should probably head back to do my paperwork, though.”

Kaneki nodded, smiling softly still. “Of course. Thank you, again.”

Escorted to the door by the other, Hide gave him a final wave, saying, “I’ll see you next time!” before leaving. It was only when he was half way home that he was struck by the realization he hadn’t gotten the others number.

* * *

 

It was a few days before Kaneki saw Hide again. He was sitting at a window table with a blonde woman, his usual companions nowhere in sight. His first thought was that they were on a date, but that didn’t seem quite right with how they were interacting; they seemed to be more friends than lovers. Though, it’s not as though he really had the experience to back up this observation; the only person he’d ever been on a date with had been Rize, and he wasn’t sure that even really counted considering he’d just been a meal to her. Watching the two talk at their table, he was briefly stabbed with a feeling of envy; even with his life as domestic as it currently was, he doubted he’d ever be able to date. Even just making friends was risky business.

He was knocked off balance when someone shoved his shoulder. Straightening himself back up, he turned to glower at the person.

“What was that for?”

Touka shrugged, “You were brooding. Quit being so angsty, and do your job.”

“Sorry.”

She rolled her eyes, and pushed a tray with two coffees on it into his hands. “This is for your favourite dove and his girlfriend.”

He nodded, setting the tray down so he could quickly write on a napkin. He took it with him when he went to the table, and, after he set their coffees down, he handed it to Hide.

“Huh? What’s this?”

Giving the other a grave look, he said, “A murder confession.”

When the others eyes widened almost comically, Kaneki smiled. “I’m kidding. It’s my number. You asked for it the other night, but I forgot to give it to you before you left.”

The blonde was gaping at him, as though Kaneki had just handed him a decapitated head instead of his phone number. Feeling now embarrassed and wondering if he’d just made a mistake, Kaneki turned and walked back to the front counter, only saying “Enjoy your coffee” before he’d left.


End file.
